Mysterious events of cave bears extinction

The bear that once lived in a giant cave once once dominated Europe was the first of the great extinct mammals. According to a new calculation, they disappear earlier than people still think up to 13 millennia.

Why did they disappear? Partly because they are herbivores.

The extinct date dates back to 27,800 years ago , coinciding with a significant period of climate change called Last Glacial Maximum when the temperature dropped, causing plant species to eat no longer. brown bear is now omnivorous)

Loss of food supplies led to the extinction of the cave bear Ursus spelaeus, one of the large animal groups including mammoths, smooth fur rhinos, giant deer and lions living in caves. They disappeared at the end of the Ice Age, according to researchers' papers published in Boreas on November 26.

The mysterious disappearance

Over the years many cave bears have been discovered in caves that may have died during hibernation. Cave bears are very large, males weigh up to 2,200 pounds (about 1 ton) . The maximum weight of both Kodial and Polar Bear - the largest species in existence today - is only about 1,760 pounds (800 kg ), while the average weight is 1,100 pounds (500 kg).

Illustration of a bear living in a European cave. (Photo: Copyright N. Frotzler, University of Vienna)

During the Middle Ages, the cave bears were thought to be the remains of dragons. According to the researchers, they are collected and used as medicine.

The question of the cause of cave bears, mammoths and other large mammal extinctions remains a mystery. Some researchers think that people hunting them make them extinct. But researcher Martina Pacher of the University of Vienna, along with partner Anthony J. Stuart of the Museum of Natural History in London, found no convincing evidence of that view for cave bears.

Another hypothesis is that some viruses or bacteria may have caused disease to a large mammalian population, but Pacher and Stuart suggest that such a 'super illness' cannot explain the time of extinction. and the phenomenon of diverse body sizes of extinct animals.

One of the earliest extinct species

Pacher used existing data and records of carbon radioactivity in cave bear specimens to establish a new chronology for their extinction event, and supported the view of climate change.

Pacher said: 'Our research shows that cave bears, among the great extinct animals in the Last Glacial period in Europe, are one of the earliest species to disappear. Other extinction events occurred at different times over the past 15,000 years. '

Many scientists have previously claimed that cave bears existed at least 15,000 years ago, but the research methods of previous surveys have many mistakes in dating and confusing cave bears. and brown bear. Therefore, Pacher and Stuart removed these data during the analysis process.

From the evidence of anatomy of the skull, collagen and teeth, Pacher and Stuart conclude that these extinct mammals are mostly plant-eaters, their diets are mostly of good quality plants. . Compared to other large and extinct mammals, cave bears are relatively limited in geography, mainly in Europe (from Spain to the Ural range in Russia). This may provide an explanation as to why they are extinct much earlier than the rest of the species.

The skull of the Pleistocene cave, Ursus spelaeus. (Photo: Joint Genome Institute)

Parcher said: 'Their highly specialized lifestyles, especially the diet that includes high-quality plants, along with limited distribution areas make them vulnerable to extinction due to colder climates and food sources. exhausted'.

Why do brown bears survive?

The brown bear shares a common ancestor with Ursus spelaeus, distributed throughout Europe and much of northern Asia still existing today.

Stuart said: "A big question can be answered if additional research is done, which is: why does the brown bear survive today but the bear bear cannot? ' The answer may have to take into account different diets, dynamic sleep strategies, geographic distribution areas, priority habitats and human hunting.

Although scientific research has been conducted for over 200 years - starting in 1794 when the anatomist Johann Rosenmüller first studied the bone taken from Zoolithenhöhle of Bavaria, it belongs to an extinct new animal he calls is a cave bear. The time and cause of cave bears extinction remains controversial.

The study was funded by the UK National Council for Environmental Research, Ha Austria Cultural Foundation and Eu project: Culture AlphiNet 2000.